What’s in a Name?

Teneice says:

I have this conversation often. In my hometown (good thing I know longer live there) interracial dating/baby-making (not marriage) is like an epidemic. What I have noticed is that white women there almost always give their child some unpronounceable accent filled name in effort to make their child more “urban or black”. All the while their name is Ashley, Jennifer or Heather.

I don’t think these parents realize what they are doing to their children when it comes to their chances in the working world. I was talking to the owner of my company and he mentioned that he knows exactly what race the person is before he even meets a potential employee just based on the name at the top of the resume.

I think when we name our children we have to remember that while a certain name may sound cute as a toddler, they will be adults a lot longer than they are children so give them an appropriate name.

Janee Michele says:

What is the matter with being creative and naming a child a name that may be indicative of coming from our community?
I disagree wholeheartedly. I believe most people only have the BEST intentions when naming their child. No matter how insane the pronunciation or spelling. I believe black people are always the HARDEST on themselves. I understand the idea that there may be a (very) slight negative influence on future employment, but it’s just that, slight. Keep in mind, there are plenty of folks who are discriminated against for more than JUST a name. There is gender bias, sexuality bias, culture bias, alot of which can not be determined by name alone. Not to mention if getting a job is the biggest concern, it is not against the law to change your name for that purpose. Plenty of our Asian and Indian brethren have done just that to pseudo assimilate without giving up or forgetting what their parents gave them from the heart.
If the issue is cruel kids, well we need to teach our children tolerance. That the world is made of all kinds of people and that its the make up of our character that is important and not the spelling or pronunciation of our names. Besides, cruel children find a way, any way, to be cruel no matter your name. I think the bigger issue is cruel adults.
Ultimately naming your child Madison or Becky, Cliff or John doesnt make your kid any better then someone who chose otherwise.
Do yourself and everyone else a favor and lighten up on your simple mindedness. For the record, I have no children but if I did, I would not have a problem naming my kid something that may indicate their heritage. I enjoy being Black, and enjoy other’s knowing it as well.
Thank you for your time.

Janee Michele says:

What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet…
-W. Shakespeare

Edie: Thank you for the compliment. With it, I think you hit the nail right on the head. I believe most people allow their personal opinions to get in the way. The issue isn’t that some folks name their children improperly, it’s that other folks don’t like them for whatever reason. I am not by any means saying I agree with everyone’s choices all the time, bit I do believe in the old adage, if you have nothing nice to say then say nothing at all.

And I have relatives and close friends with names such as God, Prince, Shammquana, Earth, and Quinneisha. I never take for granted the pride that their parents had in naming their babies. I actually appreciate the effort that people take to create a story the is uniquely and exclusively theirs. I don’t see the error in that.

For the record the writer did elude to race with the line… “Here are a few common “uh-oh” errors that occur in our community when it comes to naming our newborns.” She went on to demonstrate where having an inappropriate name would be problematic; for school children and seeking employment. Both of which I addressed in my previous response. There aren’t a ‘number’ of factors, there are two that the writer pointed out. The only other factor seems to be opinion. And opinions like, well you know…, we’ve all got one.

Thanks for taking the time to hear me out Edie…
Be well. Janee

Tres Tres DC PR says:

Wow B. My thoughts exactly.

Tanekeya Word says:

As you may have noticed, I have a very unique first and last name and I am honored beyond measure to have it. My late-aunt named me and I certainly believe everything has its reason. Yes, in some cultures “Tane” can mean a god/goddess of the forest and “kea” an asian flower. I do believe in the spiritual sense of naming your child something with meaning; but if it is symbolic to something that manifested in the parents’ lives it therefore has meaning. I simply believe that my name has never kept me from a job nor has it been a problem for me. Have people been unable to pronounce it yes! I simply state, “It’s pretty easy being that its phonetic.” In general I have always gotten whatever I desired and what was in God’s perfect will for my life…not once have I had an interview and not been hired. People have stated over time that my name or when I cut my hair and decided to go natural that my locs would hinder me. Only then did I notice that people set unbelievable limitations on themselves because of what they buy into. I say to them, “Why fly when you can soar!” Speak over your own lives and never let anyone dictate how far you can go…name your destiny.

Kamikak says:

I agree with Pearlsrevealed. People have the ability to name their children whatever they like but I think names are prophetic and when spoken carry a lot of power. Parents would be doing their children a great honor to give them names, anglican or not, that would bless them everytime their name is spoken.

Ma Red says:

I’m naming my future kids Alabama aka Abbie (for a girl) & Youngblood (for a boy)

I don’t care what anybody says.

Ma Red says:

he’ll be 94 with youngblood. I’m through explaining to folks. I’m stuck on these names. Abbie is too plain for me, but works as nickname

lilia says:

I support Tanekayas view, What if Obama decided not to run for president because his name rhymed with Osama? I also agree with the vchoosing a cultural name that has meaning and blessing. As an African I must say that we run gamut with difficult to pronounce names but that hasnt stopped those who believe in themselves from getting success.

ceecee says:

I think the most important thing is knowing the meaning and value of your name.
When I was younger, I wanted to switch to my middle name that was much shorter and easier to pronounce. My full name is eleven letters long and is actually a sentence – God gives children. Now that I’m older and wiser, I thank God everyday for giving my parents the wisdom to give me my name and like someone said, when people say my name they are speaking a blessing into my life.

But as everyone has said, on the job your qualifications should speak for itself. Your impeccable appearance should speak for itself. A lot of people associate “ghetto-fab” names with “ghetto-fab” people. Be that person that bucks the norm and changes the game.

Janee Michele says:

Congratulations Tanyetta. What a wonderful and precious gift! Have fun and let it come from the heart. No matter what decision you make, there will be people in the wings ready to judge you. Please remember, you are your child’s first example of how and who to be. Be confident in your decision and you baby will have no other option but to follow suit. Have fun and love with reckless abandon!

ericka says:

i think that we should re-evaluate what’s really in a name..I mean, can we say “Barack Hussein Obama”, really, let’s not get too caught up in pleasing others to stay “in-line”, our “creative” names can equal success just as much as the Ashleys, Jennifers, and Bobs.

kristy says:

naming your child is a very serious matter and shouldn’t be entered into selfishly or lightly. what’s cute or cool to you now, may not be so cute to your child. the name should be a badge of honor and pride, not shame and/or constant mispronunciation and confusion. we had our baby in November and toiled over what his name would be up until a few hours before he was born.

ultimately, it took seeing his beautiful face for us to finally settle on a name, one that wasn’t even among the 4 we had on reserve! it came to my honey during my labor as he was mentally begging any deity out there who would listen to bring me some relief. now, our little man is happy, healthy and will soon know that that noise we’re constantly making is his direction is actually his name. ;) and the story of his naming is pretty cool so we look forward to sharing that with him.

Janee Michele says:

I seriously doubt anyone will have the opportunity to read this, but I’ll post anyway…

To the last three post’s and Edie specifically, the bigger point that I am trying to make is that people are discriminated against for even less. Remember when it was your SKIN tone that made you a vile, dispicable creature? Remember when you were written out of society, history, the constitution, the bible? It didn’t take much to make you one quater of a human being. Do you remember what we did in response? We rose from the dead (yeah, he was black), we built monumental structures that housed and commemorated our deceased, the pyramids. We succeeded in business, had our own ‘Wall Street’ in Tulsa,OK long before we dominated sports and entertainment. We sat down in the front of buses, we walked and had dreams. Despite years of oppression, and mental degradation we have survived. Unfortunately, our capacity to blindly LOVE one another has disipated incredibly. You mean to tell me a NAME, someone else’s name, which does not affect anyone on this post personally, is YOUR biggest problem? Because someone else cant get a job, or will be looked at by others funny, YOU have a problem? Why? How does it affect you? What does it do to you for someone else’s name to have 5 syllables and begin with the letter Q? Nothing… at all!

Now, with all the energy it took to be mean, to ridicule another person’s CHOICE, wouldn’t it have been easier to get to know the aformentioned people of which we speak, and perhaps find out their personal history? Why they are were named as such? Perhaps even influence them in a positive way? You may learn something, or even gain a friend.

You all have valid points, albeit MEAN. I think that is the major point the that I don’t agree with, the meaness. Who cares what others think about us, what we name our children, how we look. Be yourself, love yourself, and try your best to love others.

And Janee, like you, my name is pronounced like Renee with a J. I have always loved my name because my mom breathed life into my existence long before I was conceived. If my name has a meaning, it is totally coincidental. My mom feels she ‘created’ my name one afternoon long ago as a teenager. I appreciate my mother’s ingenuity in naming me. She could’ve been lees lucky, but I think her intentions were right on point.

If this is the last post, I hope it falls on tender ears and heart. I hope people learn to have more toerance and love for one another if nothing else. Be well… it was a pleasure sharing with you all.

Janee Michele

LEXIBUGG says:

for those of you who don’t know why our community began giving our children such unusual name. i once read it was an attempt to reclaim ethnic identity, after centuries of ethnic names being removed and replaced with euro names during captivity, but it has gotten out of control due to the fact extremely illiterate and uneducated individuals are naming their children after any and everything regardless of the origin, erectile disfunction medication or a vehicle they will never own even see in person. unfortunately for the name mercedes, which was a common name for germany girls long before the car company existed, (infact the car was named for the creators daughter)it is now ghetto-not-so-fab!!! my little sis is having a baby girl and is going to give her some god awful name. i am so glad my father prevented my mother from naming me peaches!!!! now done get me wrong there is nothing wrong with a unique name, infact i encourage it, but their is a difference between unique and absurd!! i believe your name partially effects who you become, i have never met a doctor, lawyer,professor, or rocket scientist named bonquesha!!! i think it should have been a heads up when these names became the butt-end of lame mad tv jokes!!!

John D. says:

A name is for life. Got to make sure its right.